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New history of ACS Bulletin
reflects history of the College
To celebrate the centennial
of the Bulletin of the American
College of Surgeons (ACS), David
L. Nahrwold, MD, FACS, has
written a history of the ACS
member magazine, titled A Mirror
Reflecting Surgery, Surgeons, and
their College: The Bulletin of the
American College of Surgeons.
“After studying the history
of the College and the content
of 100 years of Bulletins,”
writes Dr. Nahrwold in the
book’s foreword, “I soon
realized that the Bulletin has
conveyed the remarkable story
of how the College and its
members laid the foundation
for our healthcare system.”
The Bulletin began in 1916 as
a series of single-subject bulletins
to the Fellowship from the
College’s founders. The first
issue described the mission of the
College, listed the requirements
for admission to Fellowship, and
included a packet of blank case
history forms for candidates to
fill out and submit with their
application. Subsequent issues
established hospital standards,
summarized external and internal
meetings and conferences, and
reported on credentialing,
record keeping, education,
specialization, ACS finances and
structure, public health issues,
scientific advances, international
relations, and military surgery,
among other subjects.
The book covers the history
of the magazine through
the end of World War II, and
illuminates the background,
concerns, and personalities
of the College’s founders and
leaders as they explained and
defended their actions to the
members and determined
what role the ACS would play
in the practice of surgery.
“Given the unpredictable fates
of periodicals,” Dr. Nahrwold
writes, “it is remarkable—indeed
astonishing—that this mirror,
the Bulletin, has not only existed,
but has thrived, for one hundred
years. Its fortunes, of course, have
been tied to those of the College,
but its editors and staff have
continuously adjusted the mirror
to make it informative, pertinent,
and interesting, and its readers
have found deep within the
mirror a reservoir of truthfulness,
accuracy, and good taste.”
Dr. Nahrwold is Emeritus
Professor of Surgery at
Northwestern University
Feinberg School of Medicine,
Chicago, IL, where he was the
Loyal and Edith Davis Professor
and Chairman, department
of surgery, and surgeon-in-
chief, Northwestern Memorial
Hospital. He served as a Regent,
Chairman of the Board of
Governors, First Vice-President,
and Interim Director of the ACS,
and in 2001 he received its highest
honor—the Distinguished Service
Award. He represented the
College at The Joint Commission,
where he was chairman of the
Board of Commissioners.
He was a director and
chairman of the American
Board of Surgery and president
of the American Board of
Medical Specialties.
Dr. Nahrwold is co-author,
with Peter J. Kernahan, MD,
PhD, FACS, of A Century of
Surgeons and Surgery: The American
College of Surgeons 1913–2012.
A Mirror Reflecting Surgery,
Surgeons, and their College is
available for purchase for
$15.95 at amazon.com. ♦
